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Is that a problem? I think all of mine did when they were working...that leaves about 45 miles to go and a bit to keep the pump cool.

Well, today it doesn't seem so bad, Jack. Now that its failed completely. I don't expect it to be perfectly accurate. The original was - for 36 months. The light would come on with about a gallon left, maybe a bit less, and the one time I kept going to push the limit on the range countdown, I think one or two miles after it hit zero, I was out. That was a couple years ago, so I don't think that one time hurt either the pump or the original strip. I was only a few hundred yards from a station, so I tipped the bike left, started it back up, and rode on to the station. Basically, the way it has been acting, until this morning, you're just looking at that yellow triangle for 30 to 40 miles, before you should be. Not the end of the world. I guess each of us would draw the line at different points. I was unhappy the warning light came on with 1.7 gallons left. A question for you - no disrepect to a guy who's been around since the Underwood days - would you be upset if yours came on with 2 gallons left? 3 gallons? Heck, some guys don't seem upset their gauge doesn't work at all. If the bike had a reserve like my airhead, and that triangle wasn't glaring at me - that would be OK.

I thought I might take the bike to Urbana this time - 90 miles instead of 180 to St. Louis. But I called them, and they don't wrench on Saturdays. I called St. Louis, and I think they had a good suggestion, knowing the bike is for sale. If I were local - sure, swing by on a Saturday morning, eat a couple donuts, etc. But since it's an all day deal to go down and back, they suggested if I get any potential buyers, tell them the fuel strip needs replaced, they (the dealer) will verify it's under warranty, and if that's a deal breaker, then I can use a day off to run and get it replaced.

Hi Howard,
Our K12S bikes have always taken about 3.7 or so gallons if we fill up just after the light goes on. Since they were the same (roughly) then I figured that was how it was. If we rode the gas down from 45 miles range to around 20 or 15, then we could get 4 gallons in them.
When Viki's '08 was new until just last week, it would start out at a range of about 290 miles and was always about 80 to 100 miles more range indicated than how the K12Ses were. I figured she would probably run out if she tried to ride it down to how we rode the K12S. Then last winter the fuel strip opened up. So it was timed well with the new warranty of 12 years. The new strip Sportland put in it behaves like the K12Ses now too.

A couple years ago we were on US 136 out of Colorado headed into Kansas on the K12Ses. I figured we could go another 40 miles from the gas station at the state line and then fill up in what looked like a small town to fill up. Only there was no gas station at 40 miles. So we turned south and went another 25 miles down to I 70. My range indicator went from 45 miles at the state line to almost zero at the 40 mile point where the was no gas. As we headed south the range went to zero and stayed there all the way to I 70. When we filled up the tanks took about 4.8 gallons. That is just about all it holds except for a little puddle around the gas pump.
The most I ever got in the K12Ses was 4.9 gallons each last week when they put the new pumps in on the pump flange recall. Aaron at Sportland told me we should go out the drive way and into the gas station across the street. There was just a tiny puddle of gas around the pump intake, at the water separator sock, he said. It was interesting to see how much gas they actually held.
When we ride on a trip and not sure where there is a gas station, I fill up if the tank is down to half or less when we happen to be near a gas station. We rode that way when we ride 2 lanes out west like to Oregon last summer on the GSes and stopped every 100 miles or so.
I am looking good on an R12GS Rallye, Viki insisted I get it and bought it for me.
It's fuel gauge behaves about the same as the K12Ses always did. So I guess I'm happy with the 1.X gallons left when the light goes on. Seems to hold about the same amount of gas as the S. And the bike carries a ton of whatever you want to carry...after 39 years on an S or RS.

I had several strips replaced under warranty and am glad to hear BMW extended the warranty period.

A couple of years ago I stopped by Southsound BMW in Fife to get a new rear tire during a trip. I mentioned to the service writer that my fuel strip was again acting up. He said that many folks had better results if they ran the BMW fuel conditioner every six months or so. I thought it might be snake oil, but it wasn't expensive so I decided to give it a try and bought a bottle. After getting home I added the suggested amount during a fuel fill up and ran the bike a bit. I didn't notice any difference right away, but the next time I rode the bike the fuel strip was working properly. Ever since then I have run some through the bike every six months or so and the fuel strip is still working reasonably accurately. It is by far the longest I have gone without having one fail. YMMV but it seems to have helped mine.

My R1200R runs almost exclusively on Chevron with Techron, and the fuel strip still failed. So I don't that helps the fuel strip.

The plus side, it Chevron has excellent stability. It takes me a 2 months to use a tank of fuel in my K75 and pick-up truck, but I never have "bad gas" problems or fuel system clogging in either.

I had 4 failed fuel strips on my 07. When I was at the dealer that recommended the fuel additive the fuel strip wasn't working. After adding it, running the bike and setting for a bit the fuel strip started working again. The only conclusion I could reasonably draw was the fuel treatment had an effect.

Just because there is Techron in the blend maybe its not the ingredient that actually helps the fuel strip?

I put Techron in my bike every few tank fulls during the first three years I had the bike. I thought maybe that, and the fact I ran almost exclusively Shell gas, had helped me avoid fuel strip failure. Maybe it did, I don't know. My original lasted until after the warranty had expired. (BMW picked up the cost of replacement as a good will gesture.) The dealer told me last week they have replacement strips out there with over 5 years on them, and others that have failed before they got out of the parking lot. I'd like to see the government force BMW to do a recall and retrofit a float. I suspect with the 12 year warranty BMW is trying to avoid that. I've got mine for sale, but won't be particularly upset if it doesn't sell and I end up keeping it, in which case I'd like to have a more lasting fix than continued trips to the dealer for replacements.

My original strip lasted around 52K miles. First replacement the shop put the BMW fuel additive in and suggested running it each tank. Well, at 1 oz/gallon that was adding around $0.75 to each gallon, and in any event it didn't help the first replacement strip (which failed within one tank of fuel). After the second replacement (third strip) I've been adding 5 oz of conditioner each 3000 miles. Maybe it helps, maybe not, but the third strip has held since last summer.

Maybe it helps, maybe not, but the third strip has held since last summer.

JayJay

Your early failures sound like luck of the draw.. not fuel additives. As far as your third strip - sounds like it was replaced after BMW pulled all the in-stock strips from dealers and replaced them (around April of 2013 I believe.) My friendly local shop service manager when last I checked still hadn't had to do any "redo's" on strips replaced since then. He thinks the vendor (who likely also made the fuel pump) might have found a fix.

Your early failures sound like luck of the draw.. not fuel additives. As far as your third strip - sounds like it was replaced after BMW pulled all the in-stock strips from dealers and replaced them (around April of 2013 I believe.) My friendly local shop service manager when last I checked still hadn't had to do any "redo's" on strips replaced since then. He thinks the vendor (who likely also made the fuel pump) might have found a fix.

Well, that's what I'm hoping. My failures happened last summer (2013) so maybe the first replacement was old stock. I remember the service advisor telling me that he had some strips that failed right out of the box in installation. My first replacement at least lasted 100 miles (;-)). I guess I was lucky to get 50K+ and almost 5 years from the original.

I have a full container of the additive so I'll keep adding it every once in a while, can't hurt. I seem to recall that it's 20 oz, so at 5 oz/3000 miles I'm set for a year or so. After that, who knows.

Your early failures sound like luck of the draw.. not fuel additives. As far as your third strip - sounds like it was replaced after BMW pulled all the in-stock strips from dealers and replaced them (around April of 2013 I believe.) My friendly local shop service manager when last I checked still hadn't had to do any "redo's" on strips replaced since then. He thinks the vendor (who likely also made the fuel pump) might have found a fix.

I'd like to hope so, Don, but the one that just failed on my bike was installed June 7, and failed completely after about 250 miles. I just made an appointment for next Saturday to get another one. Unless Jack caves in and decides to ditch his Rallye Edition to move up to Nambia Orange. I told the dealer when I made the appointment I think this one will be the good one. (I'm foolishly optimistic by nature.) Maybe I need to go to your dealer, if he's got all the good strips.

Sportland in Urbana just got a bunch of new strips. Still works...a couple weeks now

Well, I can tell you I'm calling Gateway in the morning to make sure they're not using year old stock. Just in case.

I like the guys at Gateway. Shannon and Ryan have always treated me well. But I would have got this next one at Sportland if they'd work on Saturdays. That's the first dealer I've ever seen that didn't work on bikes on Saturday.